Pope Francis met with a Christian movement of blind and visually impaired people on Saturday. They were on a pilgrimage in Rome.
“Your pilgrimage is a sign of the full participation of the faithful with disabilities in the communion of the Church,” Pope Francis told the group in their meeting on 19 February.
Father Yves Mollat, a blind Jesuit priest founded the French association, Voir Ensemble (See Together), in 1927.
Today the movement has grown to have 3,000 members across France and advocates for the inclusion of those with visual disabilities in society.
The Pope commended the group for bringing together blind and visually impaired people who “want to walk together to live the joy of the Gospel in fellowship.”
“Today, unfortunately, we are used to perceiving only the outside of things, the most superficial aspect. Our culture says that people are worthy of interest based on their physical appearance, their clothes, their beautiful homes, their luxury cars, their social position, their wealth,” Pope Francis said.
“As the Gospel teaches us, even today the sick or disabled person, starting from his fragility, from his limitation, can be at the heart of an encounter: the encounter with Jesus, who opens to life and faith, and who can build fraternal and supportive relationships in the Church and in society,” he said.
Pope Francis gave a reflection on the Gospel of John’s account of Jesus’ encounter with a man born blind at the Pool of Siloam.